What is
by aquavi
Summary: Zuko finds himself in a familiar place but it's not as familiar as one might think... Zuko/Song. Oneshot. Read/Review, I'm a virgin to writing!


Quick AN: This is my first fic... well, ever. That is that I actually feel like it's done and published and not completely stupid and... stupid. I'd ask reviewers to be kind but I also know that I might not get helpful feedback either as a result so... just tell me what you think; I enjoy honesty. :)

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Zuko found himself standing outside her home, idly drumming his fingers on the top of the fence. He realized then that he wasn't sure if she was there, or working or maybe even somewhere else- it was a comforting notion, being able to put off seeing her again, even though he took this specific detour, alone, for the sole reason to see her again... However finding that is had been nearly a year since they first met, that fateful day (and yes, he blamed the fates for it, with the idiotic actions his uncle had taken since otherwise, they probably wouldn't have met.) All that however wasn't on his mind, and he dealt comfortable coming to terms with what had happened then and he could only hope she would be; what was bothering him was... well that first moment of being in her presence. He never did well with introductions he found, though the sort of formal ones he'd been subject to lately was much more bearable since a level of polite rudeness was fully acceptable- he didn't want to come off that way to her, given how he had been a year ago...

He tried running the words over in his mind but it never sounded right. Too awkward and... stupid. What was worse was that he couldn't think of anything else, forget anything better then "Hello. Remember me? Li...Jr? Well, that wasn't my real name, but you might know that already..."

He sighed and slouched his shoulders slightly figuring that is she were home she would have come out by now because the world seemed to work that way.

His world anyway.

And he wasn't wrong. As he turned away from the fence movement from the other end of the path caught his eye. A figure had just came around the bend and seemed to hesitate for a moment before continuing down the path, and it was the young nurse he had been waiting for. Shifting nervously, Zuko pushed his hat back so that it lay on his back, its ties around his neck comfortably.

"Um... hello." He managed to get out when she was only a few paces in front of him, holding a decent sized basket in her arms. A lump kept forming in his throat, despite all attempts to be rid of it, not that it mattered. What he had planned to say (and even later) flew out of his mind, a glazed blank expression adorning his face as he tried to find something to say, while staring at the spoils of her shopping trip.

Song rocked slightly on her feet and responded why a pleasant, but somehow neutral, "Hi." She hadn't changed much it seemed, this much Zuko could clearly observe. It was almost as though time stood still in this small pocket of the Earth Kingdom, for which Zuko found a strange amount of comfort in. She added, realizing that the young Fire Lord wasn't going to give her any response, "You must've had a long journey. Would you like to come in and rest for a bit?"

"Yes!" He said, with far too much eagerness and realized that quickly, "Er, yes, that would be nice."

Song smiled, walking past him and opening the gate, with Zuko following behind grateful that wasn't almost... mostly... well, it could have been worse. She could have had a snake.

---

Familiarity was something that Zuko took enjoyment in because... well, it was familiar. He hadn't gotten much of it during what some might describe as his 'formative' years for various reasons, but it was only after he had helped his sister take over Ba Sing Sei and finally returned home to the palace that he realized it was something of a crutch.

What he felt now, however, had the air of being familiar, if only because he had been here once before, but he had a nervous aura about him that was rather suffocating.

The young man was fairly certain that he worked out this point of seeing her again, that is the main reason why he had come so far out of his usual way, but he couldn't recall what it was. Or rather, he could recall, he just didn't know how he had phrased it. He'd grown used to speaking to a crowd, but there were very few that he knew he could speak openly to, and if he was to do this right, he could only be honest to the girl, since she deserved that much. He did take comfort in the fact that his mere presence didn't instill some sort of ill feeling in her- that is, he wasn't slapped or ignored or a lot of other things that could have happened. Instead she offered him a seat and some tea- yes, he as fairly certain she mentioned tea, but he might've been in a daze trying to remember his uncle's advice which did include accepting tea when it is offered to you- so nothing seemed to be going against him... yet.

He heard the faint hissing sound of steam being released from a kettle coming from the kitchen. He stretched his neck trying to see what she was doing, but no luck.

But it didn't any of this easier did it? Well maybe, in theory but it was possible that he could bring up something that was otherwise dormant and that wasn't a good thing, but he had to bear with it. Zuko stood and strode to the kitchen seeing that she had already set the service on its tray.

"It's almost ready," she said, noticing his sudden presence, "You can-"

"Do you know why I'm here?"

Song shook her head slowly and with some care.

"And you know what I did that night?" He shifted his weight, as though he was going to take a step towards her but then decided not to. "You probably figured it out the next morning... that I took your ostrich-horse."

"Oh. That." And amused look spread across Song's face causing some confusion in the other teen. "I actually saw you take him."

"What?" The confusion he had now escalated, though it didn't quite register at first. "But I didn't hear-"

"I didn't say anything." She picked up the tray and faced him, "It wouldn't have mattered. You wouldn't have stopped. Or turned around."

Zuko gripped the end of the try closet to him in his hands and stared into her eyes for the first time since they crossed paths that day; he'd been avoid her gaze otherwise, choosing to look at her forehead instead. "You don't know that. I might've..." his voice trailed off. It would have been a lie.

_Maybe._

_Probably._

Growling under his breath Zuko's shoulders sagged. He wasn't sure what to do now and felt his body moving on its own accord, pulling the try from her hands and setting it down down with a clatter. His hands placed themselves on squarely on her shoulders, his gaze looking sternly at her features, which were worried but confused.

_There is nothing I can say to her. Nothing to make it better, so much to make it worse, and nothing she probably didn't already know or figured out._

_It's too much like that night when she showed me her scar..._

Zuko let his hands slip down her arms until they found themselves filled with her hand. Half in a daze her noted their dry texture and slight calluses on the pads of her fingers and palms. Time passed, but whether it was fast or slow wasn't clear to either of them- probably both as far as these things often go.

Song finally broke the silence, softly and with a smile. "You've changed quite a bit... since then."

Zuko's head jerked up as he blinked himself out of whatever thoughtful state he had just been in, letting her statement sink in. "Well sure, my hair's longer."

Song stifled a giggle, "Besides that I mean. I don't think I can say how I mean but..." she tilted her head to the side and added: "it probably is your hair."

They both erupted into laughter, the sort that starts off fairly normal but evolves into what is often described as 'side-splitting' even though whatever humor was said wasn't that funny. There was a release of tension however, Zuko at the very least felt, from this moment that he welcomed. When it subsided they both found that they had managed to reach the floor sitting down now, their backs to the nearby wall.

The young Fire Lord let himself relax and found himself leaning sideways towards Song, saying, "I am sorry. For how I was then; I was a -"

"It doesn't matter," she replied, cutting him off, shaking her head. "It's past. Unless, you think you're still a..."

"No. Maybe. At times. If provoked." He added, hearing another giggle stifled from the young healer's direction. She rested her head comfortably on his shoulder.

_This is like the time before, but it's different_. He decided that familiarity was a strange thing as his hand found her wrist and wrapped itself around gently.

_Very strange indeed._


End file.
